wikibooks

Use of Wikibooks for collective knowledge generation in a graduate level qualitative research course


In the present study we focus on the use of a Wikibook at a graduate level course: EDCI 690 Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods, offered in a Research-I Southern US Institution. The purposes of this study are to explore students’ developing perception and emerging conceptualization of the use of Wikibooks in the given context and find out which of the instructional design decisions enable students to complete the course objectives.
Abstract: (Click here to enhance readability)

Wikibooks are online public spaces where people participate in writing, editing, and revising the content in a variety of subjects. Wikibooks provide an innovative and non-conventional learning environment for college courses where students collaboratively author a text and also use the generated text as a resource. This innovative way of content generation and its use provide both opportunities and challenges for college courses. In the present study we focus on the use of a Wikibook at a graduate level course: EDCI 690 Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods, offered in a Research-I Southern US Institution. In the course offering, the instructor introduces the Wikibook website to the students in the beginning of the semester and asks them about their ideas of collaboratively authoring a book on the course content. After couple weeks of contemplation, students determine the topics they are interested in writing about. Each student is responsible for being the primary author of one chapter, hence deciding on its topic and drafting its content. In addition, students are asked to provide (a) editorial help and their review of their peers’ chapters and (b) technical and organizational help. Students not only collaborate in writing, editing, and revising the content of the course, but they also work as a group to organize and provide technical and other logistic support to one another as needed. Purposes The purposes of this study are to explore students’ developing perception and emerging conceptualization of the use of Wikibooks in the given context and find out which of the instructional design decisions enable students to complete the course objectives. Study findings will contribute to the literature by providing insights to the use of collective knowledge generation tools in education and constituting a road map for instructors and instructional designers who are planning on incorporating Wikibooks in their teaching practices, particularly in higher education. Research Questions The main research question guiding this investigation is: “How is a collective knowledge generation tool practiced in a graduate level course?” There are 3 sub-questions posed under the main research question: (1) “What roles the design decisions play in constructing the collective knowledge generation environment?” (2) “What are the students’ experiences with the Wikibook generation projects in their courses?” (3) “What are the instructors’ experiences with the Wikibook generation project in the courses?” and (4) “What are the students and the instructors’ views on the impact of the use of Wikibooks in education on the status quo of academic knowledge and its validity?” Methods This study is based on grounded theory. Over a semester, the students and the instructor will work together to collaboratively generate a Wikibook. The action this study focuses on exploring is the processes the students and the instructor will go through. By investigating this process, we aim at developing a theory that explains the complex and unstructured relations among students’ epistemological and pedagogical views in general and their views on the construction, practice, and evaluation of a collective knowledge generation tool; the Wikibook Project. Data Collection Study data will be collected using multiple resources. Below is a list of measures that will be used. 1) A perception and attitude survey: A survey including questions about the students’ existing knowledge, past experience, and perceptions about collective knowledge generation environments, such as Wikibooks and other Wiki tools, is given at the beginning of the semester. 2) Wikibooks pages: Students’ original writings, their reviews of their peers’ chapters, and the feedback they have provided to one another are recorded and used for evaluation. 3) Reflection papers: Students will be asked to write two reflection papers, one in the middle and one at the end of the semester, where they reflect on their developing perceptions and emerging conceptualizations of the use of Wikibooks in a given course. 4) Interviews: Open ended and semi-structured interview protocols will be developed and used to explore the students’ and the instructor’s experiences with the Wikibook Project. Volunteered students will be interviewed at the end of the semester. Group interviewing will take place to further elaborate the participants’ experiences. 5) In class observations: The classroom interactions will be observed, and the field notes will be taken. Students’ collaborations, their organizational and technical support to each other, their interactions with their peers will be recorded to help explicate the hidden and complex relation among students with one another.